Hammer actuated clicker die press

ABSTRACT

This invention is aimed at the cutting of various materials, especially fabrics and leathers, according to block patterns. By the simple use of cutting edges of steel band reinforced with structural frame, materials placed on the base board of a hydraulic press can be cut along a required profile by lowering the platen of the hydraulic press to a determined level in the exact position desired. Then, with the final dropping of a hammer head onto the top platen of the hydraulic press, complete cutting is achieved with high precision and a savings of labour.

United States Patent 1191 Suzuki Sept. 23, 1975 HAMMER ACTUATED CLICKERDIE 3,081,659 3/1963 Theobald 83/554 PRESS 3,587,372 6/1971 Prew 83/554X [75] Inventor: Seiichi Suzuki, Ota, Japan [73] Assignee: DaisuzuMeriyasu Kogyo Kabushiki Prim ry Examiner-Frank T. YOSt Kaisha, JapanAttorney, Agent, or FirmWenderoth, Lind & Ponack [22] Filed: Oct. 5,1973 [21] Appl. No.: 403,979

[57] ABSTRACT [30] Foreign Application Priority Data Oct. 7, 1972 Japan47-l00868 This invention is aimed at the Cutting of Various mate" 29,[972 Japan. 47438048 rials, especially fabrics and leathers, accordingto 29, 1972 Japan. 47438049 block patterns. By the simple use of.cutting edges of Dec. 29, 1972 Japan "48-643 Steel band reinforced withStructural frame, materials placed on the base board of a hydraulicpress can be [52 U.S. c1. 83/539; 83/554; 83/587; cut along a requiredProfile y lowering e platen of 3/ 17; g3 7 0 the hydraulic press to adetermined level in the exact 51 Int. Cl B26d 5/08 Position desired-Then, with the final pp 9f 21 [58] Field of Search 83/55, 527, 530, 533,539, hammer head onto the e platen of the hydraulic 83/554, 617, 700,561, 562, 586, 587 press, complete cutting is achieved with highprecision and a savings of labour. [56] References Cited UNITED STATESPATENTS 6 Claims, 14 Drawing Figures 2,470,561 5/l949 Hunter 83/554 USPatent Sept. 23,1975 Sheet 1 0f 3 3,906,828

FIG. 2

FIG/E US Patent Sept. 23,1975 Sheet 2 of3 3,906,828

FIG. 9 \32 FIG. 10

-US Patent Sept. 23,1975 Sheet 3 of3 3,906,828

LLO

HAMMER ACTUATED CLICKER DIE PRESS OBJECTS AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF TI-IINVENTION This invention relates to a cutting apparatus and morespecifically to cutting means for cutting many layers of thin sheets ofmaterial such as of textile fabrics, woolen fabrics, synthetic fabricsand leathers.

Many fabrics and leathers are out according to block patterns to suiteindividual purposes. To achieve mass production in cutting, fabrics aregenerally cut by the sharpened edges of a cutteraccording to blockpatterns.

In this invention, the sharpened edges of the cutter are carefully madeof Swedish high speed steel band, profiled to the required shape andstructurally enforced by a support frame. This steel block pattern canbe easily made to exact dimensions and can withstand frequent use.

According to this invention, many layers of the material to be cut areplaced on the moveable base board of an oil or hydraulic press with thesteel block pattern thereabove. The baseboard is then moved underneathhydraulic-press. The layers of material are then cut when the top platendescends to a platen predetermined level to complete the cutting of thematerial. Exact cutting down to the last layer of material, oftenpresents such problems as uneven or incomplete cutting. This inventionhas solved such difficulties. Also, the size of press is generallylimited. In order to cut material greater than the size of platen, twolayers of base board, one above the other, are provided. Exactpositioning the top platen of the oil or hydraulic press when cutting isperformed is a very important factor when the top platen is lowered tothe predetermined level. Means to cope with this objective too areprovided for in this invention. Further, with many layers of material onthe base board, it is very important that cutting action be completedown to the last layer of material. To achieve that end, a hammer to bedropped on the top platen is provided. With automatic control of thesenovel mechanisms, much labour is successfully saved.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION With reference to the drawings,the invention will now be described in more detail.

In FIG. 1 is shown the perspective view of the machine with fabricplaced on the base board and with the cutting edge placed in position.

In FIG. 2 is shown the front view, partly sectioned.

In FIG. 3 is shown the side view partly sectioned above the line 3-3 ofFIG. 2.

In FIG. 4 is shown the base board of the hydraulic press with thesupplementary base board in position.

In FIG. 5 is shown FIG. 4 out along the line 5-5 of FIG. 4.

In FIG. 6 is shown a plan view of the structurally reinforced cuttingedges.

In FIG. 7 is shown a side view of FIG. 6.

In FIG. 8 is shown a plan view of another embodiment of the cuttingedges.

In FIG. 9 is shown a perspective view of the high speed steel band usedfor the cutting edge.

In FIG. 10 is shown a perspective view of the cutting edge, in part,with the structural reinforcement viewed along line 10-10 of FIG. 8.

In FIG. 11 is shown a partial cross-section of the oil or hydraulicpress with the hammer mechanism dropped on the surface of the topplatten. I

In FIG. 12 is shown a partial cross-section of the oil or hydraulicpress with the hammer mechanism raised and caught by a stop key and heldwhile the hydraulic top platen is lowered.

In FIG. 13 is shown a partial cross-section of the oil or hydraulicpress lowered onto the base board.

In FIG. 14 is shown a partial section plan view of oil or hydraulicpress with four hammer mechanisms in position.

The detail and operation of the present invention will be hereafterexplained, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In FIG. 2; the oil or hydraulic press 11 comprising top platen 12 andbase board 13 is installed on an upright standing structure 14. The fourcorners 15 of top platten 12 are slidablly supported by four slidingelements 16 solidly fixed to the frame structure 17 and with lubricationbetween the four corners 15 and the respective sliding elements 16rigidly fixed to the frame structure. Close to the four corners 15 ofthe top platen 12, four of blocks 18 are fixed alongside the edges ofthe top platen 12 which is threaded vertically to take the threadedstopper bolts 18. These stopper bolts 18, can be vertically held by fourfixing nuts 21 at a required height in relationship with platen. The topend 20 of stopper bolts 18 is flanged so that the lowest level of thetop platen is determined in cooperation with nuts 21 threaded with thestopper bolts 18. The lowest level of bottom surface of top platen 12must not go beyond a predetermined level allowing edge cutter 31 toreach the surface of the supplemental second board 26 on the base board13. As there are four of these level adjusting means such as the stopperbolts 18 and the nuts 21, near the four corners of the top platen 12,high precision leveling of the top platen 12 can be achieved. There aretwo sets 22, 23 of limit switches employed. The limit switch 22 is madeto release the pressure cock of the press when it is in contact withpart of the top platen 12. when the top platen is lowered, the contactbetween the finger of limit switch 22 and the top part of the top platenis no longer maintained, and pressure cock mechanism is affected andpress is made to stay. When the finger of the other limit switch 23touches the extended arm 22' attached to part of the top platen 12, thetop platten 12 is made to stop as it affects pressure cock mechanisms.These limit switches 22, 23 are fairly dependable but as is the generalcase with electrical appliances, highest degrees of precision can not beexpected. To make up for this defect, a drop hammer system for the topplaten is resorted to which will be later described.

As shown in FIG. 1, the base board 13, which is moved under top platen12 horizontally extends beyond the frame structure 17. For this purpose,openings 25 23' are made between the frame structure 17 and the uprightstanding structure 14. The purpose of this gap making canteleverconstruction for the frame structure 17 is to enable materials to becontinuously supplied from the outside to the base board 13 transverselywhen many layers must be laid on the base board 13.

Referring to FIG. 3, the base board 13 which is the counter part of topplaten 12 is made to reciprocate lengthwise underneath the top platen12, the baseboard 13 being held in position by two longitudinallyextended members 24, 24 rigidly fixed to the frame structure. Theselongitudinally extended members 24, 24 are supported by stays 25, 25rigidly fixed to the upright stand structure 14. The base board 13 ismade to move at least twice the length of the top platen 12 by plunger26 in cylinder 27 This is because often the length of materials to becut requires more length than the base board 13, the baseboard 13 beinginitially equivalent to the size of top platen 12. To cope with thisrequired length, a supplemental second board 26 is provided on the baseboard 13. The supplemental second board 26 is movable lengthwise along aguide 27. Hand holds 28 are provided on transverse members 29, 29.

FIG. 6 through FIG. are referred to. Cutting edges are made of Swedishhigh speed steel band of two kinds having thicknesses of 1.5mm and 2mm,widths of 6mm and 19mm, and unlimited length. The steel board 31 withsharpened edge 32 can be bent with ease according to the profile ofblock pattern along which materials are required to be cut. To givestructural rigidity to the cutting edge, support rod stays 32 andrectangular flat pieces 33 of brass as shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 10, arehard soldered to the cutting edge of the steel band 31.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 8, the materials 30 are folded into two sheets.Use of the cutting edges 31 is restricted to contoured parts. After thematerials 30 are cut by the press, the materials 30 are unfolded forminga shape where the right and left sides are in a contrast relationship.

Making reference to FIG. 11 through FIG. 14, when the materials arethick or the number of layers of material are many, it is difficult tocut through the last layer of the material, even when other adjustmentmeans such as stopper bolts 18 are made available, due to the lack ofsufficient inertia of the press. To solve this prob lem four hammermechanisms 34 are provided at four places between the stopper bolts 18on two sides. The hammer plungers 34 are encased in their respectivecasings 35. The top of each casing is rigidly affixed to the inside ofthe top of the frame structure 17.

In the casings 35, compression coil springs 36 are provided so that whenthe keys 37 are moved outwardly the hammers 34 go into action. Normallythe hammer plungers 34 are held in the respective cylinder casings 20 bya stopper mechanism 37, 39 which can be controled by other sources whennecessary. Through the side of the casings 35 are keyholes 37 throughwhich can slide key heads 39' forced by a spring 36. When the hammerplungers 34 are sufficiently raised within the casings 35 by the upwardmovement of the press 1 1, the key heads 39 are forced through thekeyholes 37' in the casings 35 and into key slots 38 in the hammerplungers 34, thus stabilizing the plungers 34 while they are not in use.

On the top platen 12, anvils 40 are provided to receive the hammer heads34 when the hammers 34 are made to drop. The key heads 39 are pulled outof the key 38 by electrical means against the springs 37 holding the keyheads 39 with the slots 30 and the plunger hammers 34 drop onto theanvils 40. As the presss top platen 12 is raised, as shown in FIG. 12the plunger hammers 34 return to a stopped position. In lowering of thetop platen 12, the hammer plungers 34 remain in the stopped position.Then the hammers 34 are dropped on to the anvils 40 as required.

In general operation, the materials 30 in layers are placed on thesupplemental second base board 26 and the cutting edge 31 of blockpattern is placed thereon. If the materials to be cut are longer thanthe length of top platen 12, the supplemental second base board 26slidable on the base board 13, is drawn out as shown in FIG. 3 to theextreme left end. First the base board is moved by activating theplunger 26' until it is stopped right under the top platen 12. The topplaten 12 is lowered, and when the top platen 12 ceases to move further,the operating switch controlling the key heads 39 and the hammer actionis energized, thereby pulling key heads 39 out of the holes 38 in theplungers through the cylinder casings 35 and the hammers 34 are droppedonto the anvils 40. Then the second shift of the supplemental secondboard 26 is made under the top platen board 12. The same action as aboveis repeated for the remaining half of materials, thus completing thecutting action on the materials. With the raising of the top platen 12and pulling out of the base board 13 by the plunger 27 and thesupplemental second board 26 by the hand grip 28, cutting the operationis completed.

The embodiments of the present invention specifically described andillustrated herein are examplary only, and are not intended to limit thescope of the present invention, which is to be interpreted in the lightof the prior art and the appended claims only with due consideration forthe doctrine of equivalents.

I claim:

1. A cutting apparatus for cutting a plurality of layers of materials,textiles, leather and the like, comprising: an upright standing framehaving a lower portion with an operating surface thereon and an upperportion cantilevered over and above the operating surface of the lowerportion;

base board means located on the operating surface for providing acutting surface for cutting said materials;

cutting means comprised of cutting edges formed according to a desiredblock pattern and metal support rods and plates for framing said cuttingedges in the desired pattern, said cutting means being placed on thematerial to be cut after the material is laid on said base board;

hydraulic press means mounted on said upper frame portion andcantilevered over said operating surface, said hydraulic press meanshaving a top platen mounted thereto and opposed to said base board, saidtop platen being lowered into contact with said cutting means placed onsaid material by the downward motion of said hydraulic press means,

adjustable leveling means located on said top platen for keeping saidtop platen level,

plunger hammer means for supplying the force necessary to completely cutthrough said material, said plunger hammer means affixed to and hangingdownward from said upper portion of the upright standing frame;

anvil means operatively positioned on said top platen to receive theforce of the downward motion of said plunger hammer means after said topplaten has been lowered into contact with said cutting means, saiddownward motion of the plunger hammer means against the anvil meansbeing sufficient to cause the top platen to exert against the cuttingmeans the force necessary to completely cut the layers of material intothe shape of the cutting means. i

2. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein said cutting means iscomprised of thin high speed steel band.

3. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein said hydraulic press meanshas two limiting switches adapted to operate in conjunction with theposition of the top platen for controlling the raising and lowering ofthe top platen by the hydraulic press means.

4. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein said adjustable levelingmeans for said top platen is comprised of frame support fittings firmlyfixed to the upright standing walls of said upper portion of the uprightframe, top-flanged stop bolts slidably fitted into the support fittings,top platen fittings attached to said top platen and threaded to take thetop-flanged stop bolts slidably fitted into the support fittings, andnuts for said top-flanged stop bolts for adjusting said top-flanged stopbolts in the fittings so that the top platen can be leveled.

5. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein said base board meanscomprises a stationary first board having guide grooves therein, aplurality of supports affixed to said lower portion of the uprightstanding frame for supporting said first board, and cylinderpiston meansfor reciprocally moving said first board under said top platen, saidbase board means further comprising a slidable second board movablealong said guide grooves in the first board so as to extend out of saidfirst board for handling larger pieces of material than would bepossible with the stationary first board alone.

6. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein said plunger hammer meanscomprises a plurality of cylindrical casings firmly fixed to the upperportion of said upright standing frame, each cylindrical casing havingtherein a key hole;

a spring and a hammer head contained Within each cylindrical casing,each spring compressable by the upward motion of said hammerhead andeach hammerhead having therein a key slot;

and a stop mechanism aligned with said key hole, having an extendableand retractable key head for going through said key hole and fittinginto said key slot, and controlled by an outside source, whereby saidhammerhead can be held in its upper position with the spring compressedby the key head going through said key hole and fitting into said keyslot, and whereby removal of said key head from said key slot causessaid hammerhead to be forced downward by said spring onto the anvilmeans of said top platen.

1. A cutting apparatus for cutting a plurality of layers of materials,textiles, leather and the like, comprising: an upright standing framehaving a lower portion with an operating surface thereon and an upperportion cantilevered over and above the operating surface of the lowerportion; base board means located on the operating surface for providinga cutting surface for cutting said materials; cutting means comprised ofcutting edges formed according to a desired block pattern and metalsupport rods and plates for framing said cutting edges in the desiredpattern, said cutting means being placed on the material to be cut afterthe material is laid on said base board; hydraulic press means mountedon said upper frame portion and cantilevered over said operatingsurface, said hydraulic press means having a top platen mounted theretoand opposed to said base board, said top platen being lowered intocontact with said cutting means placed on said material by the downwardmotion of said hydraulic press means, adjustable leveling means locatedon said top platen for keeping said top platen level, plunger hammermeans for supplying the force necessary to completely cut through saidmaterial, said plunger hammer means affixed to and hanging downward fromsaid upper portion of the upright standing frame; anvil meansoperatively positioned on said top platen to receive the force of thedownward motion of said plunger hammer means after said top platen hasbeen lowered into contact with said cutting means, said downward motionof the plunger hammer means against the anvil means being sufficient tocause the top platen to exert against the cutting means the forcenecessary to completely cut the layers of material into the shape of thecutting means.
 2. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein saidcutting means is comprised of thin high speed steel band.
 3. Anapparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein said hydraulic press means hastwo limiting switches adapted to operate in conjunction with theposition of the top platen for controlling the raising and lowering ofthe top platen by the hydraulic press means.
 4. An apparatus as claimedin claim 1 wherein said adjustable leveling means for said top platen iscomprised of frame support fittings firmly fixed to the upright standingwalls of said upper portion of the upright frame, top-flanged stop boltsslidably fitted into the support fittings, top platen fittings attachedto said top platen and threaded to take the top-flanged stop boltsslidably fitted into the support fittings, and nuts for said top-flangedstop bolts for adjusting said top-flanged stop bolts in the fittings sothat the top platen can be leveled.
 5. An apparatus as claimed in claim1 wherein said base board means comprises a stationary first boardhaving guide grooves therein, a plurality of supports affixed to saidlower portion of the upright standing frame for supporting said firstboard, and cylinder-piston means for reciprocally moving said firstboard under said top platen, said base board means further comprising aslidable second board movable along said guide grooves in the firstboard so as to extend out of said first bOard for handling larger piecesof material than would be possible with the stationary first boardalone.
 6. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein said plunger hammermeans comprises a plurality of cylindrical casings firmly fixed to theupper portion of said upright standing frame, each cylindrical casinghaving therein a key hole; a spring and a hammer head contained withineach cylindrical casing, each spring compressable by the upward motionof said hammerhead and each hammerhead having therein a key slot; and astop mechanism aligned with said key hole, having an extendable andretractable key head for going through said key hole and fitting intosaid key slot, and controlled by an outside source, whereby saidhammerhead can be held in its upper position with the spring compressedby the key head going through said key hole and fitting into said keyslot, and whereby removal of said key head from said key slot causessaid hammerhead to be forced downward by said spring onto the anvilmeans of said top platen.